Humidifier



June 24, 1930. w, TRAFTQN ET AL I 1,765,780

HUMIDIFIER Filed 001:. 1, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 room may cause considerable damage.

Para ores WILLIAM Mf'TRAFTON, OF PROVIDENCE, -RI-IODE ISLAND, AND JOSEPH ARMSTRONG,

OEALLSTON, 'MASSACI-IUSETTS, ASSIGNORS IO AMERICAN MOISTENING COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MAINE 1 HUMIDIFIEiR Application filed October 1,

This invention relates to improvements in humidifiers. More particularly it relates to an attachment for humidifiers of the vertical forced draft type, whereby escape of too large. particles of moisture into'the room is more securely prevented. '7 I Humidifiers of this type have a nozzle arranged centrally of the casing, near its top, to direct the jet of water spray conically downward and outward against vthe'inside wall of the casing. An air'blast driven down through this spray by a rotary fan located above it entrains fine particles of moisture and carries them into' the room atmosphere. It is important that the particles thus carried besmall enough "to float in the air until evaporated, for in some instances, as where delic oatefabrics are in process of manufacture, the falling 'of'as'ingle dropof water in Tthe. e avoidance of this evil has been the subj ect of much consideration by inventors, yet modern apparatus sometimes is faulty in this respect.

The present invention eliminates this prevalentdanger in forceddraft. humidifiers by intercepting such parts ofthe water jet as mightfurnish such large drops, at'alltimes of diminished water pressure, and guiding the intercepted water to the drain through a course protect-ed from the fast moving air current. Another feature is that whatever part of the air blast is near the axis of the casing is-bythe device of the invention either directed outward into the faster moving currents or entrapped and guided with the intercepted water" to the base of'the casing. It inoreover an importantdetail that thedevice of theinvention is simple, inexpensive and may be readily installedin humidifiers as at pres ent commonly constructed.

These ends are gained 'ith a water intercepting and. air defiec'ting'device in the na ture of a covered funnelwith holes for en trance of theintercepted water,,su'ch that 'all water of the spray which might. make drops to be carried out of the apparatus by the air, too heavy to float, are separated from the air blast, those.which are dangerous'because of having in themselves too little kinetic energy being collected. and concentrated and disthroug 1926. Serial No. 138,958.

charged through a zone protected from the outward into the faster moving portion of the blast, which'has annular form, or else, to some. extent, lets this air pass with water the funnel to the base centrally without ill effect. V I

It is intended that the patent'shall cover by suitable expression in the'appended claims whatever features of patentable novelty exist in the invention disclosed.

In the accompanying drawings: 5

Figure 1 is an elevation ofa humidifier emmazes blast in he middle of the apparatus. The i bodylng the present invention, with the left halfof the casing in medial section,

Figure2 is an elevation of the water jetapparatus greatly enlarged showing the man ner of attaching the interceptor, and V Figure 3 is a plan of the interceptor-per 'se.

' Referring to the drawings, and more par-.

ticularly to Figurefl, a well known type of humidifier" of double. air current type isseen,

adapted to be hung from overhead by a pair of hanger straps 10 to which isattached a spider 12 supporting the motor 14: and fan 16;

The usual outer and inner cylindrical casings are indicated at 18, 20 respectively, the inner extending downwithin the outer from midheight of the outer to alevel slightly below thelower end of the outer, where, at 24, the

inner casing flares abruptly outward under the outer casing.

' The fan is disposed so as to draw air in at the top of the outer casing and drive it downward, some passing through the inner casing 20 and some through the annular passage a 7 between the two casings. he

The usual spray nozzle 26 is set on the axis in position for its sprayed discharge to make a conical jet downward toward the walls of the inner casing; and air from the fanabove,

passing down through the inner casing, en-

trains moisture as it goes through the spray.

At the bottom this air is turned horizontally outward in all directions by thecentral deflector 28 which there stands up from the drip pan 22, and then is turned somewhat upward by the flaring of the drip'pans edge 30 and is thus thrown together with the dry air currents which have come down from the fan throu'ghthe annularvpassage a'between the two casings-"In normal operat on this construction is sufiicient to'clea r the air of all globules of entralned water whichare too large to,be absorbed by air in the room;

4 but wehavefound trouble to; arise. when the jetis being stopped or startedr As humidiffiers of this type often operate under automatic control with frequent startings and stoppings, this condition occurs many times A during a day. Such a throwing of water o, ,7 v V r ratus-for certain klIlClSOiWOlkI'QOHlS.

maybe serious and may disqualify the app a By the inventionxwefprovide; measures to prevent large drops ofthe-sprayfrom reaching "that region :where l the outgoing air has 1 undergone its deflection from vertical t 'liorizontal direction and is aboutto pass out, into the atmosphere, accomplishing this prevention by a species'ofautomatic selection, which does not affect the flow of the spray under normal pressure butonly when thewater jet' at 26 is not' operating with ,force suflicientto throw its spray-to the ewalls, of the inner v casing 20. The selectionis 'efiectedby an intercept-or arranged-under the.spray jet and adapted by size andgelevation relative to. the spray to] collect those, of the larger 7 spray drops which have insuflicient kinetic energy to reach theicasingflg), The, device vhas aifunnel ,38'with anjupst-andinglperipheral flange 40. ,The mouth or top o fthe funnel is closed by a conical'airadefieoting 1 cover 42, atwhose edgeais a series ofvopen'- ingsn'44 through this coverjust inside the i flange 40. The coveris secured within the flange in any suitable manner and the whole is supported immediately .underthe impact element 46 againstwhich the jet ofiwater from nozzle 26 impinges for themalring of the, conical spray;

For this support an internally threaded boss 48 on cover 42 is provided, to screw 011 the lower end-of element 46 to 'a rigid position, serving' also as a lock nut to maintain theimpact element 46 in desired adjusted position. l

The device may be; made, of a -size with respect to the inner casing 20, and set in such position relative tothe jet, that, when the jet is operating under a normal pressure, trajectory of the spray from it passes above and vfree of the peripheral flange 40 as for 7 example within the ,conical'zone indicated by the dotted lines, in which case the larger globules,v which ought not to be carried out by the blast, have kinetic energy enough to pass them through the blast at this place 7 and to drive them against the'casingwall, to

which they cling and from which they pass to the drain,.by fflow down the walls, into trough and thence into the drip pair-22,. shielded fromair'currents by suitable duct [means for'producingwith a C ing sprayadapted to be attached to the walls 36. As soon as the jet pressure Idiminishes, however, or before it has attained full pressure when being started, in both of which cases the spray, is lessjfinely divided, the drooping spray and the dripping water is intercepted by the peripheral flange 40, and

this Water passes into the funnel through opening 44 andis guided centrally through;

the, casing to the drip pan, shieldedirom the air blast.

larger drops of water which have less energy and would otherwise fall in the air blast.

And in: the erm diate. st e of pressure the'same 1s true of those of the As a result, the dange r'of too large globules I v of water rbeingvblown' from'the humidifier; is made practically negli "ible. ,The proper elevation and diameter ;o, flange 4Q tos ,7 ui l gthe intercepter 50,. that it. cuts, ih t aj p rysgf the spray when thatitrajQtQry has fallei so that its largerdrops would not reach the vertical :wall of, the casing, but Would faill P and into the space between it and the'deflector The device also, serves to utilize; more o f the air currents for carrying moisture th'rough" a the humidifienEin that'the conical top of the intercepter deflects the portion of at or near theafxjisfoftlie casings, into the faster inoving current 1further tro nthel-said v aXis where it, can betteraidand amplify the proper operationof' the humidifier." j

l fea claim asourinvention; a

1. In. a forced aria 11 [idifier a of air through WlllCl11W21d381' is directs conical jet against :the Wall of,.,the ca the combination, with as nojz z le and a spray-j ing impact element of an intercepter pact elementin position to entrap jettejd water particles, the force, and directionoj 7 whose travel deflected by; said, element.

a'st l for th 1am iii would be insuificient to carry them to the said casingwall, 2. In a forced for producing within a "casingablast of air' through which water is directed iira conical jetagainst the wall of the casing, the combi;

nation, with a nozzle," of an interceptor) for the jet, comprising a funnel and deflecting cover therefor, therev being ,openings for water to passfsaid coyer int-o the tunnellinjiaii' side the peripheral edge of the funnel;

in location intercepting. .the trajet0ry,,, r water particles jetted with less than normal operating pressure;

- funnel being positioned underthe saidno'zzle 3. A ,h'umidfierhaving, in combinatiomfa I vertical casing; means for vproduciiigabla'st of airi do nwa d thro h idr a insaa spray nozzle at the axis of said casing adapt- 1,765,780 I V V '3 ed to produce a conical jet of Water across said air blast and against the casing; and intercepting means close under said nozzle within the hollow of said jet for deflecting 5, the central portion of saidair blast toward the casing and thereby creating below said intercepting means a zone of minor air move ment; said intercepting means being capable of collecting the jetted water particles whose 10 momentum and direction of travel would prevent their reach'ingthe casing and discharging them downward through said zone. Signed at Boston, Massachusetts, this 29th day of September,' 1926; I WILLIAM- M. TRAFTON.

JOSEPH ARMSTRONG. 

